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Key Terms

conservative force
force that does work independent of path
conserved quantity
one that cannot be created or destroyed, but may be transformed between different forms of itself
energy conservation
total energy of an isolated system is constant
equilibrium point
position where the assumed conservative, net force on a particle, given by the slope of its potential energy curve, is zero
exact differential
is the total differential of a function and requires the use of partial derivatives if the function involves more than one dimension
mechanical energy
sum of the kinetic and potential energies
non-conservative force
force that does work that depends on path
non-renewable
energy source that is not renewable, but is depleted by human consumption
potential energy
function of position, energy possessed by an object relative to the system considered
potential energy diagram
graph of a particle’s potential energy as a function of position
potential energy difference
negative of the work done acting between two points in space
renewable
energy source that is replenished by natural processes, over human time scales
turning point
position where the velocity of a particle, in one-dimensional motion, changes sign
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